Descendants 3: A New Beginning
by PerfectlyLoudBouquet2
Summary: I have a rule: don't judge something until you've tried it yourself. So, because I didn't agree with a lot of the choices made in Descendants 3, I decided to craft my own version.


It's a new school year. The school is more integrated w/ Villain kids and Auradon kids, but it's still 1 VK to every 10 AKs. The OG VKs have graduated. Mal is in training with the Blue Fairy to be Queen. Evie is an assistant to 3 fashion designers (the fairies from Sleeping Beauty). Carlos is a vet's assistant (the dad from 101 Dalmations). Jay is a coach for Auradon Prep. The opening song shows all of this:

\- the new VKs (including Dizzy) looking outnumbered by AKs in class  
\- Mal entering a room labeled 'Queen Prep' and being taught by Blue Fairy (Mal is unhappy and clearly terrible at it)  
\- Evie looking happy and being shown around a boutique by the 3 fairies  
\- Carlos looking happy and wearing a vet lanyard name-tag  
\- Jay in a coaching uniform in front of a mirror looking happy

Mal is mentally distant and sad because she's worried about Uma, she feels like her Queen Prep classes just highlight how much she doesn't fit, and she's still not sure what 'home' means for her. Ben and Evie are worried about her because she's so distracted and sad.

Jay is excited to show up to his first day as coach. The head coach (Phil from Hercules) introduces him to his team: the first-year Auradon Prep class (a group of 14 year olds). Dizzy's a part of the group. They're all terrible. Jay is no longer excited.

Evie admits she's worried about her and Mal drifting apart in their adult lives. Mal's royal family will replace her and the VKs and Mal will become a different person. She's also stressed because Doug is distant as well and she doesn't know why. She sings a song that reflects this and parallels 'Space Between' from D2.

Ben proposes to Mal in front of a crowd, something that enrages Audrey. She's mad because she was next in line to be queen until Mal swooped in. She starts formulating a plan.

Audrey approaches Mal and, acting friendly, tells her she wants to see where Auradon's new queen came from. Mal, who is excited to have an excuse to visit the Isle, agrees to take Audrey on her motorbike.

Evie sees Mal and Audrey leave together and is worried Mal is already replacing her. She tries to talk to Doug about it, but he's clearly avoiding her for some reason, which makes her sad.

Over time (and through song), Jay teaches the kids how to do better at their sport (old school soccer? The sport from D1?). He teaches them how to work together to get the ball away from the person who has it. He shares the stuff about teamwork that he's learned over the past two movies.

Mal and Audrey arrive at the Isle and Audrey realizes how bad things are. She shows some kindness and empathy by giving money to some begging kids and helping other kids with their jobs. Mal sees this and realizes Audrey isn't too bad when she's not just thinking about herself. Suddenly, some kids steal Audrey's jacket. Remembering her anger at Mal (and all VKs), Audrey sneaks away from her and looks for someone to help her with her evil plan. She's complaining out loud about how, thanks to Mal, she doesn't fit in at the Isle OR at Auradon (unknowingly paralleling Mal's complaints).

Uma appears out of the water and pulls a 'You don't like Ben as a ruler? You don't like Mal at all? You want to rule the world? Let's team up." Uma says she'll help her IF she promises to bring down the barrier when they rule Auradon together. Audrey agrees, but she's definitely lying.

Audrey and Uma reveal they're working together and steal Mal's bike to get to Auradon, stranding her on the Isle (the irony of which makes Uma especially gleeful). The pair have an AMAZING VILLAIN DUET and go off to the museum to steal the spellbook and Maleficent's staff.

Evie is stressed that Mal is ignoring her texts. She goes to Ben, who's having an intense conversation with Doug. Doug makes an excuse to leave when Evie shows up. Evie tries to push that aside and tells Ben about Mal. He agrees that Mal has been gone for longer than she should have been. Ben, Evie, Carlos, and Jay join up to go get Mal. Dizzy catches them leaving and she admits she's been feeling homesick. They let her tag along.

When they all reach the Isle, Mal explains what happened with Uma and Audrey. When they get back, EVERYONE is magicked into loving Uma and Audrey as rulers, something that doesn't affect them because they were on the Isle. Ben immediately recognizes this as the spell he was under (TWICE!), so he goes to pull water from the enchanted lake.

Meanwhile, Carlos goes and uses True Love's Kiss on Jane and Evie uses TLK on Doug. (Song?)

The group rejoins and Ben realizes they can't just bring everyone in Auradon down to the lake. Evie says she can make an invention (a water cycle machine) to make the lake water rain down onto Auradon. She and Doug can build it, but it'll take time. In the meantime, they need to stop whatever Audrey and Uma's next steps are.

Audrey and Uma are in the castle and they're arguing over who outranks who. Audrey admits she's never going to bring down the barrier when she's a ruler. She'll toss all the VKs out, including Uma. Uma says she thought Mal was entitled and self-absorbed, but now she sees that Audrey is way worse. They have another song: a reprise of their first song, but with ironic callbacks to the 'teamwork'-y things they'd said before.

While they're distracted, Carlos gets Dude (his dog) to fetch the spellbook and sics all the animals from his vet job onto Uma and Audrey to slow them down. He runs away and passes the book off to Jay.

Back at the lake, Evie and Doug are working on the machine. Evie finally directly asks him why he's been so distant. Doug reveals that he's been planning on proposing to her, but he's really nervous he'll mess it up and he was asking Ben for help. Now he's worried he's ruined things because Evie deserves a perfect proposal and he's spoiled it. Evie tells him she loves him and any proposal is good for her because it means they'll be together forever.

Jay finds his team and breaks the spell on Dizzy. The two of them work to individually break the spell on the rest of the team.

When Uma and Audrey escape the animals, they exit the castle to see Mal, Ben, Carlos, Jay, and Jay's team of children. They mock the group, but Jay's team use the teamwork they learned earlier to get Maleficent's staff away from Audrey. Uma uses a spell she remembered to sic all of Auradon against the good guys. The people start surrounding them, acting like mindless zombies, and start dragging them away from Audrey and Uma.

Suddenly, it starts to rain! The spell breaks!

Feeling defeat nipping at their heels, Uma and Audrey run away. The good guys chase after them. Uma and Audrey are nearly caught by angry townsfolk at every turn and get cornered into climbing the stairs. They end up on the roof (at night in the rain).

The VKs, who are close behind, block the door to get back down. Realizing the jig is up, Uma and Audrey bemoan their fate, explaining why they were upset enough to curse everyone in the first place.

Mal stops the mob and says she understands: "Not like I haven't cast a few curses of my own". She apologizes for how she's been treating them and says she realizes the integration for Auradon of the VKs has been slower than she would like it to be. It's also been a mostly one-way street. It's not like the royals have been trying to beautify or pour resources into the Isle.

MAL

(to Uma)

I promise, bringing down the barrier, joining the Isle and Auradon, and helping make the Isle a better place will be my first task as -

(seeing Audrey looking away angrily)

You know what? I don't want to be queen.

Gasps, shock.

BEN

What?

UMA/AUDREY

What?

MAL

I never wanted to be queen. I'm terrible at it!

(to Ben)

Ben. I love you. But . . . I think Audrey should be the queen.

AUDREY

What?!

UMA

You're not serious.

MAL

She's the one who's been trained for it from childhood!

(to Audrey)

Audrey, you saw the Isle. It's in bad shape. They need you. You can help them all.

CARLOS

Mal, Audrey may not be the best choice for this.

JAY

She doesn't care about anyone but herself!

MAL

She does. There's a different side to her. I've seen it.

Audrey looks like she's thinking about it. Evie waves, getting her attention.

EVIE

If you need help with ideas for beautifying the Isle, I can help. I've been a fashion consultant for a whole month now. It's kind of my speciality.

AUDREY

(disbelieving; quietly)

Really?

Mal takes Evie's hand, grinning.

MAL

And Audrey being queen means I could spend more time with my family.

Evie looks elated that she's not losing her best friend.

BEN

Wait, Mal. I don't love Audrey.

(to Audrey)

No offense.

AUDREY

No, it's fine. I don't like you either.

(Ben frowns)

Like that.

MAL

Is it possible you and I could still be married and you could be king, but Audrey could still be queen?

BEN

(considers it)

It's never been done before.

MAL

(gestures to the VKs)

Look at us! These past few years have been pretty full of things we've never done before.

BEN

(considering it)

Okay. We could do that.

AUDREY

On one condition.

CARLOS

She's not even queen yet and she's already making demands?

Jay elbows him.

AUDREY

Uma gets to be my co-queen.

Uma looks surprised.

BEN

I don't think 'co-queen' is a real -

Mal puts a hand on her chest.

MAL

Let her finish.

AUDREY

Uma's the one who had the idea to destroy the barrier in the first place. She's always put her people first. Because that's what they are. Her people.

Audrey puts out a hand. Uma considers it, then takes it.

UMA

Deal. I mean, let's be real. You need me. Who else is going to keep you in line?

We cut to months later. The school year is over. Doug and Evie are clearly engaged. Everyone is gathered for the crowning ceremony for Uma and Audrey. Everyone claps for them. The audience is full of VKs and Auradon kids in a much more even balance. It's a little hard to tell who is a VK and who is an AK.

There's a final number where they all sing and celebrate. The final shot shows the bridge between the Isle and Auradon, which is permanently up to join the two lands.

THE END


End file.
